splatek16

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Visitor Messages

Hey man, I just logged onto the computer and saw this message, which did not appear for me in on the iphone app tapatalk. Hudson's book is a great start and he's a nice guy if you ever get to meet him or reach out to him. And, I have to say I feel the same way: after hitting fern valley recently and catching monster trout that act like strange out of place fish, it's great to get back to some wild fish, even if they are small.

Online Topo map recommendation: http://www.mytopo.com/maps/ is my favorite. I like this site, because it's really easy to use and the printable function is pretty awesome. I will typically print out a map of the area I am going to hit to have a back up for my phone app. On the phone, I've really been enjoying the GAIA app. It's like a topo map in your hand with zoom functions too (I'm old and have pretty bad eyes).

I am sure you have gathered a lot of other info here at the board, but just in case here are some other recommendations.

Rod: cheap, I like the eagle claw; had two, broke one. That's why I like the cheap rods. If you are going to be climbing (i.e. falling down) waterfalls, rhodo stomping, running from bears and sasquatch there ain't no reason to have a $2-400 rod, IMHO. Reel: same thing. I two small chinese reels that I got for free and one that I bought at a going out of biz sale for about $15-20. Wet wading is fun and cools you off in the hot summer; but I also sometimes wear snake chaps, particularly in those areas that look snaky. Flies: dries and droppers. That's my game and I am sticking to it. I like big ugly bushy dries and more natural, possible hot spot droppers. Size depends on where and what I am fishing, but never ever larger than a 12 and usually never ever smaller than an 18, mainly because I hate small flies (big hands, bad eyes) and the fish in my experience don't really key in on the small flies.

OK, I think that should get you started. IF you decide to head out, let me know where and when, maybe I could join you or give you some advice by pointing you toward a good small stream.

Dude,
I must say (and I'm probably not the first) that some of your posts have really gotten me wanting to scratch the itch of getting on specks/bluelining. I've had stints in the past where I've done some exploring but never quite got it down. I ended up buying Steve Hudson's Bluelining 101 and that was a great resource on how to plan and execute bluelining trips and such, but my issue is simply being overwhelmed with all the land/topo maps(like 3 dozen+ in N Ga alone) available. Its funny after getting on some monsters on the Soque recently has me jonesing to get on some small specks. Do you have any guidance on a specific topo map or maps you would recommend to another new blueliner? I attached the link of the online topo site I have been exploring to show you what I'm looking at. Obviously any insight would be fantastic as you have just been killing it recently. Thanks! - Drew https://data.fs.usda.gov/geodata/ras...ons/states.php